''Live at Blues Alley'' is a double live album by the Wynton Marsalis Quartet, recorded at

Blues Alley Blues Alley, founded in 1965, is a jazz nightclub in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Musicians who have performed at Blues Alley include John Abercrombie, Monty Alexander, Mose Allison, Tony Bennett, Rory Block, Ruby Braff, Gar ...

in December 1986 and released through

Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music, Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of Japanese Conglomerate (company), conglomerate Sony. It was founded on Janua ...

in 1987. The quartet included trumpeter

Wynton Marsalis Wynton Learson Marsalis (born October 18, 1961) is an American trumpeter, composer, teacher, and artistic director of Jazz at Lincoln Center. He has promoted classical and jazz music, often to young audiences. Marsalis has won nine Grammy Awar ...

, bassist Robert Hurst, pianist

Marcus Roberts Marthaniel "Marcus" Roberts (born August 7, 1963) is an American jazz pianist, composer, arranger, bandleader, and teacher. Early life Roberts was born in Jacksonville, Florida, United States. His mother was a gospel singer who had gone blind a ...

and drummer

Jeff "Tain" Watts Jeff "Tain" Watts (born January 20, 1960) is a jazz drummer who has performed with Wynton Marsalis, Branford Marsalis, Betty Carter, Michael Brecker, Alice Coltrane, Ravi Coltrane, and others. Biography Watts got the nickname "Tain" from Kenny ...

. The album was produced by Steven Epstein;

George Butler George Butler may refer to: Arts and entertainment * George Butler (filmmaker) (1944–2021), American filmmaker * George Butler (record producer) (1931–2008), American record producer * George Bernard Butler (1838–1907), American painter * Ge ...

served as executive producer. In 1988, the album reached a peak position of number two on ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'' Top Jazz Albums chart.

Composition

The double live album ''Live at Blues Alley'' by the Wynton Marsalis Quartet was recorded December 19–20, 1986 at

in Georgetown, Washington, D.C. Members of the quartet included trumpeter

, double bassist Robert Hurst, pianist

and drummer

. The album was produced by Steven Epstein;

served as executive producer. Marsalis's compositions on the album include "Knozz-Moe-King", "Skain's Domain", "Delfeayo's Dilemma", and "Much Later".

Stanley Crouch Stanley Lawrence Crouch (December 14, 1945 – September 16, 2020) was an American poet, music and cultural critic, syndicated columnist, novelist, and biographer. He was known for his jazz criticism and his 2000 novel ''Don't the Moon Look ...

wrote the album's liner notes.

Critical reception

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

's Scott Yanow recommended the album, awarding it 4.5 of 5 stars.

Track listing

Adapted from AllMusic.

Personnel

Musicians

– trumpet *

– piano * Robert Hurst – double bass *

– drums

Production

* Steven Epstein – producer *

– executive producer * Tim Geelan – engineer, mixing * Phil Gitomer – assistant engineer * J.B. Matteotti – assistant engineer *

Delfeayo Marsalis Delfeayo Marsalis (; born July 28, 1965) is an American jazz trombonist, record producer and educator. Life and career Marsalis was born in New Orleans, the son of Dolores (née Ferdinand) and Ellis Louis Marsalis, Jr., a pianist and music pro ...

– mixing *

– liner notes

Charts

In 1988, ''Live at Blues Alley'' reached a peak position of number two on ''